Our story starts with another couple that we love; Ryan, Andrew’s brother, married Carly’s good friend Delaney in Ketchum, Idaho in July 2023. Unbeknownst to us at the time, Delaney had been working behind the scenes to make sure that we met. Casey, Carly’s childhood friend Sydney’s husband who Andrew had met at Ryan’s bachelor party earlier that year, introduced Carly to Andrew shortly after Ryan and Delaney’s rehearsal dinner. Andrew’s first impression of Carly was “how striking her eyes were and how tiny she was,” while Carly thought he was “very handsome, tall, and had an adorable smile.” After a few drinks with the bride and groom-to-be, Carly asked Andrew to play a game of foosball. We hit it off like we had known each other for a long time, and sparks began to fly. Since we lived on opposite sides of the continent, we never felt pressure to be anything but ourselves, because there was no way this was going to be anything more than a fun connection at a wedding, right? RIGHT? We continued to hang out the next evening at the wedding and then the next day at brunch. Carly gave Andrew her number, and we texted the entire time Carly drove back to Salt Lake City with Katie (sorry Katie!). We FaceTimed a few days later, and found ourselves opening up to each other even more. Before we had known each other for even a week, Andrew booked a flight from Vancouver, BC to visit Carly in Washington, DC–we had to figure out if this was just wedding magic, or if there was something there. The rest of our story is pretty simple: A LOT of traveling (14 trips, 34 flights, and 2 train rides with more planned), making an effort to communicate with each other about everything, countless hours of FaceTime, and so.much.love. Andrew secretly planned an intimate proposal with both his and Carly’s parents for Christmas Eve 2024. He took her to a park near her childhood home, spun her around so she was looking at the mountains, and got down on one knee for about 0.5 seconds before Carly shouted YES. We wouldn’t be where we are today, planning our wedding, if not for the people who know and love us, supported us, and consoled us when we weren’t sure if long distance could work. But we are so glad it did! Carly never thought she would be engaged to a man who lived in another country and who she has never lived with, but she knows that she found the kindest, most thoughtful man and her life is already better with Andrew in it, even from afar. Andrew once told himself “no more long distance ever” but quickly found himself rethinking his commitment to that statement as he began to learn more about Carly and their relationship grew. His feelings echo Carly’s: He’s never felt more accepted, understood, and he can’t wait to see the future and grow old with Carly. The best part is that the end of long distance is in sight: Andrew and Carly are moving in together in June of this year. <3